A fine bowling spell from Ryan Bovell and strong batting from Ainsley Hall ensured Cayman Islands continued its winning streak at Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 5 (WCL Div. 5) when the side defeated Argentina by a comprehensive 10 wickets to ensure the team’s second win of the event.

Host Singapore bounced back from defeat to Malaysia to beat Bahrain at the Singapore Cricket Club by 102 runs while Malaysia took on fellow WCL Div. 6 qualifiers Guernsey at Kallang, where the Channel Island was defeated in a closely fought contest by just four runs.

Cayman Islands continued its winning record against Argentina in Pepsi ICC World Cricket League events when the Americas sides took each other on at the Indian Association Ground.

Abali Hoilett’s side lost the toss and were put into field, a decision Argentina captain Esteban MacDermott may have regretted after the side were bundled out for 93 runs in the 37th over of the game.

The batsman to contribute any runs of note, and even then just 22, was veteran opener Grant Dugmore as the entire middle-order collapsed to the bowling from pace duo Conroy Wright and Ryan Bovell. Bovell proving to be the pick of the bowlers, with the 38-year-old policeman claiming five wickets for just nine runs – he claimed the key wickets of Pablo Ferguson, Matias Paterlini and Martin Siri.

The in-form Wright, a warehouse manager on Grand Cayman, dismissed both Dugmore and Lucas Paterlini. The Argentines failed to perform once again with the bat and were all out well before lunch.

After a brief interlude, Argentina took to the field with Cayman Islands openers Steve Gordon and Ainsley Hall tasked with knocking off the runs. The pair completed some 62 runs without loss in the 14 overs before lunch and post the innings break Hall completed his half-century off 58 balls in a steady batting display by the 39-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman.

Man of the match Bovell said: “We came into this match confident we could beat Argentina, especially since our past performances were so strong against the side. We did well against them today and it’s a positive to now have two wins under our belt.

“Looking ahead to Friday, this boost is definitely good for us especially since we’re playing a good Guernsey side, hopefully we can spring a few surprises on them.”

A disappointed Argentina coach Toby Bailey said: “We didn’t bat to our full potential, but that being said we came up against a very good bowling attack. We always knew we would struggle against Cayman Islands today and going into this tournament I asked the guys to think about whether we even deserved to be in Division 5, especially since Argentina has not won a match since Division 2, a number of years ago.

“Looking ahead to Friday and Saturday it’s about being positive with the team and giving debuts to those new guys coming through the side as that’s important for the development of Argentina cricket in the long run.”

Cayman face Guernsey later today and their captain Stuart Le Prevost admitted it was a game to be treated with respect, adding: “We go into every game to win and we don’t take any opposition lightly; we will face Cayman Islands with respect. We’ve got a day off tomorrow and hopefully that gives us time to get over the defeat before we bounce back for Friday’s game.”

Scores in brief (Day Four)

Kallang
Malaysia 194 all out, 50 overs (Aziz 30, Navaratnam 31; Nussbaumer 3-27, Hooper 3-38)
Guernsey 190 all out, 49.2 overs (Kneller 47; Ralalage 4-28)
Malaysia won by four runs
Man of the match: Hiran Ralalage (Malaysia)

Singapore Cricket Club
Singapore 205-8, 50 overs (Chaminda 69, Param 52; Tahir 2-30)
Bahrain 103 all out, 29.5 overs (Adil 57; Saad 4-10. Shoaib 4-37)
Singapore won by 102 runs
Man of the match: Saad Khan (Singapore)

Indian Association
Argentina 93 all out, 37.2 overs (Dugmore 22; Bovell 5-9, Wright 3-19)
Cayman Islands 94-0, 22.1 overs (Hall 62 not out, Gordon 25 not out)
Cayman Islands won by 10 wickets
Man of the Match: Ryan Bovell (Cayman Islands)